California's Gregory Franklin to Retire from State Service

As the state's assistant secretary for health IT, Franklin has provided oversight in California’s health IT infrastructure.

Gregory Franklin, California's assistant secretary of health information technology, will retire from state service in September. Jessica Mulholland

Gregory Franklin, the assistant secretary of health information technology in the California Technology Agency, will be retiring from state service in September.

Franklin has served in the California Technology Agency since June 2011, providing oversight in California’s health IT infrastructure.

Prior to the CTA, Franklin worked as the deputy director of health care operations for the California Department of Health Care Services from October 2009 to June 2011, in which he directed Medi-Cal program administration. He also worked as assistant executive officer in CalPERS from February 2007 to October 2009 as the executive of health care services purchases.

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His first high-profile state government position was as the deputy director of health information and strategic planning in the California Department of Public Health from June 2002 to February 2007.

Franklin has long served as the senior health administrator for the United States Air Force Reserves, from January 1996 to the present day, where he ensures medical services for 3000 military personnel.

In 2012, Franklin told Government Technology that when California entered discussions on health-care reform in 2007, an electronic health records system also was being developed in the military, giving him valuable experience -- even if the approach is different because of the setting.

“From purchasing health care to IT to project management, all of the political and administrative pieces are pretty much the same in the reserves, but [they’re] at a Department of Defense and federal level,” Franklin said. “A lot of the training and necessary skill sets that you need to be successful in both environments are the same.”

The majority of this story was originally published by Techwire.net. Photo of Gregory Franklin by Jessica Mulholland.